Earth Class
Background The Earth class is Earth Fleet's first space amphibious assault ship. It is capable of performing amphibious warfare, anti-submarine warfare, anti-piracy missions and mine countermeasures. Being the first class of amphibious ship in the Earth Fleet and being modelled after the Saratoga Class Ultra Carrier, it is indeed a formidable asset in the Earth Military. Statistics Design The Earth Class adopts the same super structure and hull as the Saratoga Class Ultra Carrier. It has a huge array of defense platforms at the top of the hull, around the main bridge. The main hangar bay is located in the hull, with only 2 hangar decks instead of the 5 decks in the Saratoga Class. The 3 decks were substituted as living quarters for the 14,000 troops that will be on the ship. The Earth Class can carry up to 700 combat and transport aircraft along with 18,000 troops (4,000 MACO, 14,000 Marines) and 400 transport craft for the troops. Propulsion The Earth Class will be propelled by a normal warp drive and a dark matter warp drive. It will be equipped with two warp nacelles and a stronger impulse engine to evade incoming missiles and other threats. Protection and Armament The Earth Class Amphibious Assault Ship will be the first class of starships in the Earth Fleet to ever incorporate heavy armour and upgraded Block II Mk4 Shields. The heavy armour will be incorporated on all sides of the ship, around the two bridges and the warp nacelles. For self-defense, the ship carries multiple defense platforms but lesser than that of the Saratoga Class Ultra Carrier. It will be the first Earth starship to be equipped with the ASROC (Anti-Submarine Rocket) for Anti-Submarine Warfare against cloaked targets. It will be equipped with the new Mk 12 Sonar for detecting submarines and the extended range AN/SPY4 Sensor Arrays for extended detection range of up to 4,000 light years. Operational History Equipment Carried The Earth Class will carry up to 700 combat and transport aircraft and an additional 400 transport craft for the troops and their equipment. Of the 700 aircraft, 200-300 will be the Pelican Class dropships (of both assault and transport variants) and 300 will be a mix of C-18 Fighters and C-21 Bombers. As for the transport craft, it would be the Longbow Class (both aircraft and transport variants). A typical loadout for the Earth Class is 18,000 troops including 4,000 MACO, 430 AAVs, 330 tanks, 450 IFVs, 500 Humvees and other equipment for a ground assault. For air assault, it can carry up to 4,000 aircraft including helicopters. For naval assault, it can carry a maximum of a Carrier Strike Group Size, meaning 1 Carrier and up to 10 other ships. Construction Construction of the Earth Class has begun in 2249 and last till 2270, with a total of 75 ships being planned. The first ship, the UFES Earth, is 99% completed and will be commissioned in mid-2251. The second ship, the UFES Okinawa, is 75% completed and will be commissioned in late 2251. A total of 4 more ships are under construction and will not be in active service until 2252 to 2255. Currently, a total of 42 ships are being planned to be completed by 2260.